Entranced
by anonymous-lemonade
Summary: Inspired by Toni Braxton's song, Spanish Guitar, this is an AU one-shot. Please Read and Review! Hints of Kiyora/Mine. Nodame/Chiaki if you squint.


**Title**: Entranced  
**Genre**: General A/U  
**Rating**: PG (possibly PG-13 for the people who catches the innuendos)  
**Characters**: Chiaki, Nodame, Mine, Masumi, Kiyora, Sakura  
**Pairings**: Chiaki/Nodame if you squint. Slight Mine/Kiyora.  
**Word Count:** 1755

**Summary**:

"_I wish that I was in your arms  
__Like that Spanish guitar  
__and you would play me through the night  
__till the dawn...  
__I wish you'd hold me in your arms  
__like that spanish guitar  
__all night long, all night long...  
__I'd be your song... I'd be your song_"-Toni Braxton

* * *

The winter air nipped at the noses of the occupants up and down the streets of Tokyo as the stars glittered brightly in the foreground of a snow filled night sky. Tucked away in a secluded corner of the city, an inconspicuous cafe stood blushing from the warmth that radiated from behind the tall mahogany doors. Overhead, erected proudly, a bright maroon colored neon sign displayed the words "Amore". The cafe was unusually packed that particular night for one semi-exclusive reason: the guest performer that night has traveled all over Europe with his guitar- no... Spanish guitar- and performed in a hundred different cafes, pubs, and concert halls. And now, he was home. Deciding to end his hundred day tour in his home town in the heart of Japan, Chiaki Shinichi had been looking forward to a vacation after he reports to his mentor of the night's performance but it seemed that his mentor, Franz, had other plans in mind for him. Either way, Chiaki would find a way to get some R&R for himself for sure even if it took a chunk of his paycheck to send Franz to all the nightclubs in Asia and keep his mentor out of his hair, even for awhile, would have been a blessing. 

And in that small cafe, cramped with warm bodies, there sat in the middle of the smoky dimly -lit room, was a small group of friends sharing a drink and speaking of days filled with laughter and memories. A tall twenty year old, bleached hair punk rocker cradled his cup of coffee in his glove-covered hands as he sent sidelong glances at the woman across from him. Her long, dark, auburn tress cascaded down her shoulders creating a chocolate waterfall against the ruby colored cashmere sweater she donned for the occasion. To her left a younger girl with bright eyes and sweet smile sat shyly enjoying the unusualness of the contrabass that played in the jazz band on the stage. She would occasionally ask the gentleman next to her if he was tired or bored as he would constantly be fixing his voluminous afro-inspired hair which was pinned back with a neon orange colored hair pin and muttering when his "Chiaki-sama" would appear on stage. He would always answer back, "Oh stop fussing! I am just fine... unlike someone whose stuffing her face with her fifth- no wait... sixth plate of cheesecake." The "someone" in question sat across from him in a dark green plaid one-piece dress that screamed "Mama Made" with a small pair of velvet cherries ornament the right side of the dress. If her dress was not the most unusual thing about this girl, it would most definitely be her bed-head shoulder length hair. This would be the first time she spent the night with her friends at this particular cafe. It was fairly apparent of this fact for when she muttered some kind of nonsensical phrase that sounded like " I Gyabon /I " before requesting yet another cheesecake, she had no idea how much it would cost her at the end of the evening. But she didn't care, she was going to take complete advantage of the fact that her friends were not paying any attention to her, each lost in their own world. She was their for one thing only... and that one thing was just served to her with extra caramel drizzle on top this time. Digging in, she knew not of bliss greater than the taste of cheesecake melting upon her tongue and a sensation more addicting than that of caramel kicking her sugar high into high gear. This was perfection to her... nothing could have had produced such a satisfaction as this more gratifying than this.

And then the music stopped and the featured performer took his place on the stool upon the stage.

An eruption of applauses rumbled the small cafe as Noda Megumi looked up between bites of her decadent dessert to see the cause of such a ruckus. Even Masumi-chan had jumped out of his chair in utter spasms at the sight of the performer who was now adjusting the microphone, leveling it to his lips before saying in a husky voice, "Good evening, ladies and gentlemen. I'm Chiaki Shinichi and I shall be performing with the Lovely Alley Crew a special number for our stunning guests tonight. Please enjoy." Turning to the band behind him, he smiled at each player and then, setting the tempo, strummed the first cords.

The sound of control shattered at the first note that rung within the walls of that inconspicuous little cafe. Nodame was lost... entranced and coaxed to life by the sound of a heartbreak being strummed on a guitar- no... a Spanish guitar. Her eyes were transfixed to the depth of sorrow that radiated from the stage. A sense of longing hid behind those cold eyes, she noticed, as Chiaki played to his heart's content, pouring not only his loneliness but his fears, insecurities, and unanswered desires. It was as if Nodame could have found the meaning in life in those sad eyes.

Her decadent cheesecake quickly deserted, Nodame paid extra close attention to the song trying with all her might to memorize the riffs and composition of the piece. Her hands immediately started playing the notes on air imitating the notes that she heard. Her heart ached as much as her mind awoke to the sounds of inspiration.

Emotions running array, she couldn't feel her arms as they became numb from being held up for such a long time in the same position. Nor did she feel the rush of tears that flowed from her eyes as the build to the crescendo nearly leaped off the small stage and into the souls of each individual that had perchance sat in on this performance.

When the song ended, there was no doubt as to why Chiaki Shinichi was so famous for his Spanish guitar solos as a standing ovation was granted from the audience and establishment employees. His ten-minute long solo was finally done and his hundred-day tour was finally over. Now, he could go to the apartment and sleep in for the next month!

Chiaki bowed to the crowd and smiled at one of the rowdier groups that was sitting in the middle of the cafe. They seemed to have I really /i enjoyed the performance as five of them were all on the brink of tears by the middle of the song (one of them actually began to bawl her eyes out)! Finally, when he pulled his himself back up to a standing position, he noticed that the girl that was crying had dashed out and left her friends all in mild confusion. As if struck by a lighting bolt, the puck rocker nudged the afro guy next to him and said something inaudible to Chiaki over the cacophony of applauses.

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"I am going to make a band!" Punk Rocker said

"WHAT?" Afro yelled over the screaming patrons. "Damnit! Stupid Nodame! She better pay me back for all these friggin' cheesecake!"

"I AM GOING TO MAKE A BAND AND GET CHIAKI SHINICHI TO BE IN IT!"

"Oh, okay!" Ruby said sarcastically. "Like that's ever going to happen!"

"Whooooaaa... that would be just too cool to even think about, huh?" Contrabass said as she turned to Punk Rocker.

"RIGHT?! RIGHT?! That's what I'm sayin'! Wouldn't it just be too cool? We have to work hard! We have to make a band with that guy!"

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As Chiaki existed the stage, he could have sworn that he heard someone shouting, "You wait, Chiaki! We're gonna be stars one day! Just like you! You just wait!" but taken aback for a second, he regarded it as just a figment of his imagination.

After he shook hands with a couple of the employees in the back and climbed into the car that was suppose to drop him off at the apartment. He smiled wearily at the prospect of a nice hot shower before a decent night's sleep. Yet, as gravitation pulled him deeper into the plush leather seats, his eyes gave into the weight of exhaustion as the snow continued to fall outside the confines of the vehicle.

What seemed like mere seconds was 20 minutes later as the driver notified him that he had arrived to his destination. Climbing out gingerly into the freezing cold air, Chiaki grabbed his luggage that was stored inside the trunk of the car and then made his way up the icy steps to his sanctuary he once called home.

Shuffling his feet to the second floor, through the sluggish mess his brain was in at that moment, Chiaki stopped dead at the top of the stairs, frozen at the sound of a piano that was playing in a nearby apartment. He forced his lead like legs to follow the sound, as if following a scent; the scent of a familiar sound, a familiar composition, a familiar arrangement.

Before he realized it, he stood right in front of the door that the piano was coming from and recognized that that song that was being played was none other than his ten minute solo piece he played earlier that night at the cafe! This pianist must be a professional that was at his performance not too long ago. Behind this door that he stood in front of, a magnificent pianist sat in front of nostalgic keys, making magic with their fingers. Chiaki could hear the bass, the drums, the cello, the sax, and the guitar in that piano composition. Perfection to the very last notes... it was the same piece. And yet it was not. It had a bounce to it that his song did not; a flare for improvisation that made his piece nearly pale in comparison. This was the work of a genius. He needed to meet this pianist! Surely he could even offer this person lunch with him in hopes to ask whether or not they would like to possibly tour with him! It was a marvelous thought he left with as he walked one door down (to his pleasant surprise) and opened the door to his apartment. Oh, how he wondered who it was that produced such a magnificent representation of his performance. Chiaki cannot wait till morning to meet this person, because for sure they would want to be heard all over the world with him, right?

--**Owari**--

**Author's Note**: Thank you so much for making it this far in the story. I hope that it wasn't too confusing (especially the dialogue play! lol It was so much fun to write but I can see why it would potentially be confusing. ;) I loved working on this piece so much and I hope that you enjoyed reading it as much as I did writing it. Please Read & Review! If possible even, leave some constructive criticism for me, please. 3 Take care!


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